thundercats_hofandomcom-20200215-history
Mechanical Plague
Mechanical Plague is an episode from the original series of ThunderCats. Written by Peter Lawrence, it originally aired on November 27, 1985. Official Summary Panthro invents Holograph-Recorders to 'film' the ThunderCats' experiences on Third Earth for incorporation into a Time Capsule through which future generations can learn. Mumm-Ra overhears the plan and believes it provides an opportunity to attack each ThunderCat in isolation. He summons robots and war machines from the past, creating a mechanical plague to destroy the ThunderCats. The Technopede fights Panthro; the Warbot fights Tygra; the Driller fights Cheetara - who also has to contend with Rockmen; WilyKat and, WilyKit are pursued by the Mechanosect. Lion-O witnesses the ThunderCats' plight through the Sword of Omens, but before he can do anything to help, the Mutants set him upon. He summons his colleagues, who escape their individual opponents and rally to Lion-O's side. Throughout this episode, Snarf tries to record his important domestic chores - but only succeeds in trapping himself high on a washing line. His humiliation is, of course, recorded for all to see. Official Moral The ThunderCats engage in an effort to record history for the sake of future generations. The lesson for mankind in learning from the past is that if we know what mistakes our ancestors made, we will not make the same mistakes. Even in our individual lives, this is an important lesson. In this episode, Lion-O and the ThunderCats face a mechanical plague of robots they have met before. Despite having to face the robots in a group rather than one at a time, they are able to call upon their memory of the previous encounters and defeat the robots once more. In our daily lives, too, we will always have reason to call upon knowledge of our past. We must be open to learning from our present experiences so that we can use our knowledge in the future. Story Panthro unveils his latest invention, the Holographic Recorder, a floating video camera. He reveals that these recorders will follow and capture the activities of each of the ThunderCats, and these recording will be saved as a time capsule so that future generations may learn and benefit from them. Eager to show off their skills, the ThunderCats set out in different direction with their recorders following them. Having observed all of this from his cauldron, Mumm-Ra flies to a barren desert like area and by invoking the “Ancient Spirits of Iron and Steel”, brings to life the Technopede, Plun-Darrian Warbot, Driller, and Mechanosect. The mechanical monstrosities then seek out each of the ThunderCats with the intent to destroy them. The Giant Technopede attacks Panthro, the Warbot singles out Tygra, the Driller traps Cheetara in Rockmen country, and the Mechanosect goes after the ThunderKittens. Under orders from Mumm-Ra, the Mutants make a beeline for Lion-O, who is busy showing off his swordsmanship for the holographic recorder. Fortunately, the Sword of Omens warns the young lord in time and he uses it to summon his friends. Upon seeing the Cats’ Signal, the ThunderCats are endowed with renewed strength, and thus able to easily defeat their respective robot opponents. They then join their leader and scare off the Mutants. Characters Vehicles Locations Notes of Interest * The various robots that Mumm-Ra resurrects have all appeared in previous episodes: ** Giant Technopede from “Turmagar the Tuska (episode)” ** Plun-Darrian Warbot from “Return to Thundera” ** Driller from “Spitting Image”, “Return of the Driller”, and "Jackalman's Rebellion" ** Mechanosect from “Return of the Driller” * One of the scenes in the footage of Snarf that is played back is actually a scene from Snarf Takes Up The Challenge. * This episode makes use of a lot of footage from previous episodes including “Exodus”, “Return of the Driller”, “Sixth Sense”, “Turmagar the Tuska (episode)”, "Snarf Takes Up The Challenge", "The Time Capsule", and the show’s opening titles. Animation Errors * In Return to Thundera, it was shown that the only way to defeat the Plun-Darrian Warbot was a weak spot under its foot. The rest of its body was completely impervious to any kind of attack. Yet in this episode, Panthro fires a few shots from the ThunderTank at the Warbot and defeats it. * While Lion-O is showing off for the Holographic Recorder, the Eye of Thundera keeps on changing from open to closed to open again between scenes. * The Holographic Recorders record videos yet they make clicking and shutter sounds like a camera taking still pictures. Notable Quotes Mumm-Ra: Ancient spirits of iron and steel, salvage the robots and war machines of the past. Send me a mechanical plague to bring down the curtain on those wretched ThunderCats, once and for all! Lion-O: You were great, Snarf. Tygra: The star of the show. Snarf: That's the last time I do a comedy part. Next time, I'm going to be serious. The Real Snarf. Panthro: You know what they say. Snarf: What's that? Panthro: There's a hidden Hamlet in every comic. Snarf: Exactly! Snarf: What the heck is a Hamlet? Mumm-Ra: Cowards! Bunglers! Obviously, I expected too much from a cast of bit-playing Mutants. Rest assured, ThunderCats, this was just a rehearsal. When it comes to the real performance, I, Mumm-Ra, the ever-living, will star! And I will not leave the stage until I have destroyed you. Snarf: Know why ducks don't fly upside-down? 'Beause they'd quack up. (talking to the camera as he is fighting the Mutants) Lion-O: I hope you're getting all this, because I'm not doing any retakes. WilyKat: What's the use of a time capsule, Lion-O? Who cares what happened in the past? Tygra: We can learn from the past. WilyKit: You see a mistake and try not to make it again? Panthro: Exactly. Media This episode was released on the following media: DVD * Season 1 Volume 2 DVD * Season 1 DVD * Seasons 1 & 2 DVD Episode Screenshots External Links *Mechanical Plague on IMDb *ThunderCats 1985 cartoon series on Wikipedia *ThunderCats on ThunderCats.org Category:Thundercats: 1980s TV episodes Category:ThunderCats episodes written by Peter Lawrence Category:Season 1 (ThunderCats 1980s)